


A Fast but Steady Heartbeat

by spooderboyandtincan



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Concussions, Explosion, Gen, Hurt Peter Parker, Hurt/Comfort, Peter Parker Calls Tony Stark "Dad", Precious Peter Parker, Scared Tony Stark, Uncle Rhodey, Worried Tony Stark, dad tony stark, no starker, worried james "rhodey" rhodes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:53:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25864675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spooderboyandtincan/pseuds/spooderboyandtincan
Summary: Peter, Tony and Rhodey are enjoying their afternoon at a restaurant until the building and their food explodes.
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 9
Kudos: 189





	A Fast but Steady Heartbeat

“Mr. Rhodey, I’m telling you! It’s fact, _hotdogs are tacos!”_

Rhodey rolled his eyes and Tony laughed. 

Peter’s ridiculous arguments were nothing he wasn’t used to, and he loved listening to his kid ramble. 

Peter leaned against his side. “When will the food be here? I’m starving!”

Tony frowned and worriedly felt his forehead. “Didn’t you get enough to eat at lunch? Petey, you need to eat-”

“Mr. Stark, I’m fiiiiiiiiine! I just need food! Stop worrying!” Peter interrupted.

Tony didn’t look any less worried. His “Peter Alarm” as many called it, had been ringing in the back of his head all day. 

“You’re such a mother-hen, Tones,” Rhodey muttered. Tony snorted, but didn’t deny it. He was.

He got up from the booth. Call him overprotective, but Peter was hungry, and needed food. 

They were the only ones at the restaurant, (Tony had made sure of that) except for their server, an elderly woman with waves of gray hair. 

_Why was the food taking so long?_

Tony walked to the counter. No one was there.

Suddenly he knew. Something was wrong.

He spun around to see Peter, standing up and looking at him with a scared expression. Tony had just enough time to yell, _“Peter!! Get down!”_ before the roof caved in, lighting the room in a golden red explosion. 

He hit the ground hard, blacking out.

~~~~~

Rhodey came to with a gasp. His head was throbbing. Small cuts covered his arms. He could hear shouting, screaming, and sirens wailing in the distance. Small fires crackled around him.

_Explosion._

_Shit_

He didn’t know what had caused it, a faulty gas pipe or some vengeance-seeking criminal. Whatever it had been, the threat was gone for now.

He knew there was something else. What was he forgetting? “Snap out of it, Rhodes,” he whispered.

_Tony and Peter._

“Oh Lord!”

He bolted up. The kid had been closest to him. Rhodey remembered Peter jumping across the table, in front of him.

_Peter must have taken the worst of the explosion._

_And at what cost?_

“Kid!” he shouted. He scrambled across the wreckage, easily spotting Peter’s red sweatshirt. “Peter!”

He knelt next to his small body, frantically feeling for a pulse. “Oh, thank _god.”_ His heartbeat was slow but steady. 

“C’mon kid. Wake up.” Rhodey lifted Peter’s eyelid, checking his pupil. 

As far as he could tell, it had to be a concussion. A bad one.

His best bet was trying to wake the kid up. He carefully rolled Peter on his side, tapping his cheek.

“Kid. C’mon, kid, wake up. Tony’s gonna kill me if he finds you like this.”

_Assuming Tony was ~~alive~~ in any shape to kill his best friend._

“Peter! Wake up, kid. Tony’s gonna freak if he sees you. C’mon.”

To his surprise, Peter blinked slowly, cracking his eyes open. “Dad?”

Rhodey winced. “No, kid. It’s me, Rhodey.”

Peter groaned blearily. “Want… wan’ Dad.”

“I know you do, kid, we’ll find him,” Rhodey tried to reassure.

The boy muttered something he couldn’t understand, frowning loopily. “Dad. Dad. Wan’ him.” 

“Peter, I’m gonna get your dad, okay?”

_Where the hell was Tony? He hoped he was okay._

“Dad? Dad… it hur’s. Hur’s.”

“Your head? Peter, does your head hurt?” 

The boy didn’t register his words, just blinked wearily. “‘M tired.”

“No! No, kid, you can’t sleep! Stay awake, hear?” Rhodey tapped his cheek again. “C’mon. Stay awake. I’ll get your dad if you stay awake, kid.”

Luckily, Peter seemed to want Tony more than sleep. He blinked his big brown eyes open. “Dad.”

“That’s right kid.” Rhodey turned around. “Tony! Tones! Get you ass over here! It’s Peter!”

Rhodey heard coughing and shifting, nearly ten meters away. “Tones? Get over here! Peter needs you!”

Groaning at first, and more shifting. _“Pete?”_ came Tony’s confused, worried voice. _“Peter?”_

“Tony! He’s here, I got him!” He turned back to Peter, who, thankfully, was still awake, staring up at him with half open eyes. “Tones!”

_“Peter! Pete!”_ Tony screamed, staggering to his feet. He ran over as best he could. _“Petey! What- what’d you do?!”_ he slurred, glaring at Rhodey. 

Tony knelt next to Peter, frantically feeling for any injuries. _“Petey. Oh, Petey,”_ he whispered, over and over. _“Baby.”_

“He’s got a pretty bad concussion, Tones. I don’t know if he’ll recognize you.”

Tony didn’t seem to hear him.

“Dad?” Peter muttered, finally noticing Tony.

“Petey. _Petey. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Does anything hurt? Anything at all?”_ Tony asked frantically, looking more awake every minute. 

“Mmm. Head. Hur’s,” he whispered.

Tony went even paler, looking terrified. _“Petey. Oh, sweetheart. I got you, Dad’s here. Oh Pete.”_ He kissed Peter’s forehead. _“I got you, baby. I’m here. Dad’s here.”_

Tony clutched Peter’s hand tightly in his, stroking his soft curls, kissing his cheek. Tears were running down his face. 

Rhodey could hear him humming softly, sounding absolutely _wrecked,_ but trying desperately to keep it together for his kid’s sake.

Rhodey searched through the wreckage for Tony’s phone. Of course, the one time Tony didn’t bring the suit, disaster struck. 

Hurriedly he called Helen Cho, trying his best to describe Peter’s various injuries. She assured him that she was on her way. He then joined Tony.

“Tones? Peter’s gonna be okay, you know. There’s nothing too major.”

Tony’s eyes hadn’t left Peter’s face.The boy stared vacantly into space, completely out of it. Tony stroked his cheek gently. 

“He has to be okay, Rhodey. I need him,” he whispered dully.

“He will be okay, man. He’s just got a bad concussion. He’ll be springing out of bed before you know it,” Rhodey assured, setting a hand on his shoulder.

“Rhodey. _I love him so much_. _**So much.** I- I can’t lose him. I need my kid. I need him.” _

“I know, Tony. Peter knows that too.” He looked at the kid, who still stared blankly. 

Tony bit his trembling lip, ignoring his tears. “He- he looks like he’s _gone.”_

Rhodey shook his head. “No, Tony. He’s right here. He’s alive, he’s breathing. Maybe he’s listening to everything we say.” He took the man’s hand and rested it on Peter’s pulse point.

“See? He’s gonna be fine, man.”

Tony felt the steady thump of his baby’s heartbeat. And suddenly, sob after sob rattled his chest. _“Peter, Peter, PeterPeterPeter. I love you. IloveyouIloveyouIloveyou. I love you so much. So so much.”_

It felt like hours as tears streamed down his cheeks. As he repeated, over and over and over, how much he loved his baby. 

_More than anything._

_Peter was his world, his everything_

_He loved him more than it seemed possible_

_His kid_

_His baby_

_His Peter_

**Author's Note:**

> Come scream with me on [Tumblr!](https://spooderboyandtincan.tumblr.com/)


End file.
